“Everchanging and vital, but never perfectible”

If ever you’ve joined me for practice at Downtown Yoga or heard me speak at conferences, then you know I love an inspiring or thought provoking reading or poem at the end of a class. The last few years, I have thoroughly been enjoying reading The Book of Awakening by Mark Nepo, given to me by a dear friend around the holidays. His passages never fail to resonate with me, even when I’ve read them several times over, year after year.

With the holidays upon us once again, and resolutions just a week away, the passage on December 21st is representative of how I feel about the journey of Accepting Your Body’s Wisdom.

“There is nothing to do and no where to go. Accepting this, we can do everything and go anywhere. One of the basic notions of Taoism is that the world in all its mystery and difficulty cannot be improved upon , only experienced. We are asked to believe that life in all its complexity and wonder is complete as is – everchanging and vital, but never perfectible. I’ve come to understand that this doesn’t prevent our being involved. On the contrary, accepting that the world can do quite fine without us, allows us to put down the burden of being corrective heroes and simply concentrate on absorbing the journey of being alive.” Mark Nepo

As weight loss, diets, cleanses, and fresh starts are touted as the only way to enter 2016, I encourage you to re-read Mark Nepo’s passage as it pertains to your body and your journey to Accepting Your Body’s Wisdom.

Give it a try:

“There is nothing to do and no where to go. Accepting this, I can do everything and go everywhere. One of the basic notions of Taoism is that MY BODY in all its mystery and difficulty cannot be improved upon, only experienced. I am asked to believe that MY BODY in all its complexity and wonder is complete as is – everchanging and vital, but never perfectible. I’ve come to understand that this doesn’t prevent my being involved. On the contrary, accepting that MY BODY can do quite fine with WEIGHT LOSS, DIETS, CLEANSES, allows ME to put down the burden of being a corrective hero and to simply concentrate on absorbing the journey of being alive!”

As you enter 2016, enjoy the journey of being alive in THIS BODY EXACTLY AS IS!